Hailing from a typical Sindhi (Hindu) family, i always packed extra pounds since my childhood. As a staple diet at home consisted of oil, cheese, butter, ghee & lots of sugary foods. My sedentary lifestyle made things even worse, i went on adding weight at a constant pace. I was the chubbiest and an introvert kid of my class all throughout my pre-primary, primary as well as secondary education.

It was only in 2006 that for the first time i indulged in some kind of a physical activity. I started gymming when i weighed 238lbs. Post 16 months of constant work out and maintaining a diet regime, my weight reduced to 183lbs. I was elated with the results, so much so that over the next few months, i completely stopped paying attention to my diet. I was also occupied with my studies, and back to my sedentary lifestyle which resulted in gaining weight again.

In 2006, over a period of 3 years my weight was now 280 lbs! i was ashamed of the way i looked, i was extremely low on self-esteem and lost all my confidence. With only few months left for college to begin, i had little time to get back in shape and look presentable. I didn’t want to start a new phase of life, with meeting new people, to be again clouded with opinions about my body, as it was during my school years.

There i was, i hit the gym again and started to eat healthy. I gave my 100 percent to lose that extra flesh, and i was able to shed weight gradually. By then, i had regained some of my lost confidence and was excited to start college.

College started and life was going well. I now weighed 180lbs but it didn’t last long. In second year of college, life took a turn when i entered into a relationship. During this time, i lost track of my fitness goals and stopped working out. I was again back to square one and gorged of all kinds of food.

Even though my relationship didn't last for more than 9 months, post that i failed to get back on my healthy regime.

After completing college, i joined my dad’s business and got occupied. My daily routine consisted of absolutely no physical activity, just sitting in office working from my desk, resulting in gaining weight.

Fast forward to 2014, almost 5 years later, i weighed 300lbs. This time, things got worse as not just me but my parents also felt ashamed with the way i looked. To the point that i wasn’t allowed to attend my cousin’s wedding. Reason being the way i looked, and i don’t blame them, i am sure no parent would want people to laugh at their kid for the way he/she looks.

"Everything happens for a reason!"

This denial of not being able to attend the wedding, hit me hard. It acted as an eye opener and was enough to wake up the lazy couch potato, who hadn't been doing any physical activity since a few years plus the extra pounds which weighed me down and left me feeling more lazy & lethargic.

However, this time i kept my approach slow but consistent. After losing 55lbs in 2006 & 100lbs in 2009, i had an experience of losing 155lbs so i knew the drill. I maintained a note of the mistakes i committed in first two trials as i didn't wish to repeat them again. I wished my third trial to be the final & most refined one with minimum or no mistakes.

I started with making healthy choices like going for small walks at least 5-6 days a week, trying not to eat anything with lot of oil, cheese and sugar, but i didn't put my 100% into it. Maybe i didn't want to rush things up this time as i really wanted the results to last forever. Hence, i started bringing in changes slowly but at a consistent pace.

My breakfast:

My lunch:

My dinner:

I indulge in:

NUTRITION PLAN:

I started with avoiding things i should completely stay away from and added those to my diet which were light on calories and satisfying at the same time.

After few months, i corrected my meal portions. I broke them down to 7-8 meals per day, this enhanced my metabolism and helped me burn few extra calories even while resting.

Once portions were in place, i corrected my meal timings. I simply use to avoid having any solid meal two hours prior to my bed time, all caloric dense foods were consumed in morning which left me feeling satisfied the entire day. All carbs & fats rich food were taken before working out so that everything gets used up while getting converted into energy, all post workout meals were high on protein and fiber and last two meals of the day were just fruits.

Sundays were compulsory cheat days! Because body needs a shock once a week otherwise it gets used to your diet, therefore, i used all my Sundays to eat anything and everything. I used to write down things i craved for from Monday to Saturday and ate them on Sundays. This way i fulfilled all my food cravings and in return it allowed me to stay focused on my goals and just wait for the upcoming cheat days. (It’s all about training your subconscious mind!)

My Transformative journey was 2 years long and there's no specific foods or diet plan that i can list down which i used to have daily as i kept changing my diet at regular intervals as and when my body got used to it and stopped reacting or my taste buds asked for some change, all i did was observe how my body is reacting to the food I'm consuming and what are its outcome.

My diet plan was never fixed as it kept on changing according to the need of the hour,

For example after enjoying an extravagant cheat Sunday I easily gained 3-3.5lbs so my Monday's and Tuesday's mostly had fruits like apple-watermelon-pomegranate-papaya-orange the entire day with a protein shake post workout drink and a salad of fibre rich veggies-cottage cheese and boiled legumes as post workout meal.

Hence, All I can do is share the basic macros around which my diet used to stick around

Initial few months were strict : my goal was to be in calorie deficit mode at all time as my physical activities were not much and I wanted my body to target the stored fat as a source of energy as and when needed,

Then few months were like I wasn't really trying to stay in calorie deficit mode but was trying to burn extra calories than i used to consume,

Then final few months were:(last 40 lbs of stubborn fat) a combination of both burning extra calories along with eating right things which gave me enough energy to carry on with my workout while keeping me in calorie deficit mode.

My workout:

ACTIVITY PLAN:

I started with 40 minutes of walk 5 days a week, next week i increased to 6 days, after that i kept on adding 5-10 minutes every 1-2 weeks. Sundays were compulsory rest days! as i didn't want my body to get used to of my routine, plus taking a day off proved really beneficial to keep my moral high so that after a day's rest i get back to my routine all fresh, motivated and super charged.

After 2 & half months of just walking i developed some stamina and got rid of my lethargic feeling till some extent, my lifestyle wasn't sedentary anymore as i was doing some physical activity for minimum an hour every day. Then i joined gym to give it an extra thrust and pushed myself hard to give in all I have got.

At the gym, i started with an hour of cardio every day and half an hour of circuit training (light weights but fast pace, with minimum to no rest between sets).

After few months, i shifted to 30 minutes cardio, an hour of circuit training then again 30 minutes cardio. As and when my body got used to these exercises & routine, i raised the bar by increasing the intensity in cardio & weights in circuit training.

The more weight i lost, the more motivated i felt. Earlier i used to shy away from checking my weight in my couch potato phase, and now when i'm active i cannot do without checking my weight. The figures excite me to push myself harder every time i step on the scale.

Few months down the line, i was lighter by many pounds. It's a pretty well-known fact that when you are on the higher side of your weight you tend to lose it very quickly, however as and when it gets to the lower side you lose the pace. The entire process slows down gradually, as you get near to your standard body weight, you have to push it even hard to get that scale moving. Since it's the stubborn body fat which can only be lost with a lot of extra hard work and right nutrition plan otherwise you'll end up losing your muscle mass instead of that stubborn fat. Therefore, i started morning running sessions as during that time you're in a fasting state which makes it a perfect time for your body to utilize that stubborn fat by converting it into energy to fuel your morning cardiosession.

After starting am cardio sessions, i felt even better. My strength was on a rise and my stamina constantly surprised me whenever i tried to push myself to failure. My body was getting in shape, even people started noticing the change which gave me a different high all together, the feel good feeling got converted into feeling great, with the praises/compliments/appreciation i got as a result of my hard work which i put in for my own good.

The more people noticed, the more effort i put in to get better. I literally got greedy for compliments, it's like i started this transformative journey for myself and after going ahead with it till some extent i got tired and frustrated with the same monotonous lifestyle and exertion i used to put on my body every day. I started losing hope and motivation but since people started noticing me and my changes my hope and motivation level skyrocketed.

For the final few months, i was doing 30 minutes of cardio, 2 hours of circuit training and again 30 minutes of cardio along with my am running sessions. By this time i was an inspiration for people willing to lose weight, i became a topic of discussion amongst friends and family. I started off as a fitness blunder and now a "weight loss transformation inspiration". This gave me a different high and i was loving it, people used to come to me in the middle of my workout just to get some tips on how i did it and even to congratulate me on my progress.

If i can manage to knock down 158lbs in 24 months with such slow but consistent approach anyone can do it! Start before it’s too late!

It's a lifestyle, amalgamation of healthy choices in terms of food, drink and activity which one makes every day for a better-fitter tomorrow is called fit/healthy lifestyle.

Don't give up! Never give up!

One rep, one push, one pull, one step, one punch at a time and you'll see your goal getting attracted towards you inch by inch!

The sweat, the time, the dedication will eventually pay off. Just stay consistent!

How do I stay motivated?

Weighing scale: What gets measured, gets managed! Investing in a nice digital scale will help you track those small changes which will help you plan your course of action.

Activity tracker: Investing in an activity tracker is also a very good call as it will help you track your calories burnt, steps taken, distance covered, floors climbed, heart rate and even sleep quality. If this isn’t enough motivation, you can connect it with your social media accounts and you'll be able to see your friends progress, which can prove very motivating as it adds an edge of competition to the entire game.

Maintain a book of goals & stats. Write your current weight, your current body fat %, your current muscle mass, your current overall body measurements, your current avg. daily active minutes, a short summary on your current energy levels, etc. and make sure you write every week or max 15 days. We humans search for inspiration from outside but the best way to get that dose of inspiration is to look "within"! And this book will help you have a look from the time where you started, the distance you have travelled so far as well as the distance still left to be covered. Self-comparison is the best comparison because it results in self-motivation which is the best form of motivation.

Click pictures every now and then, don't feel shy or ashamed with the way you look, you are changing and so is your body. Click as many pictures & store them, after few months of transformation you'll feel proud of the changes you have gone through when you'll compare your current- old pictures, plus you can create an amazing before and after documentary from those photos and videos for your social media accounts.

How do you ensure you don’t lose focus?

in the age of short cuts like weight loss surgeries and bypasses, i chose the hard way out. It took a lot of serious hard work, dedication, time and consistent efforts just to get better and better each day, i thank those people who motivated me in the right way to keep going and i thank those negative comments from positive people more because of them i pushed myself hard just to PROVE them that I CAN !

Start with your journey with enough fuel till you see some changes, then once you start noticing the changes, then your positive changes, appreciation & compliments will drive you forward towards your goals.

The best part of your transformation begins when you inspire others!

Have multiple pre-set goals with pre-set time frames to achieve them, this way your long journey will be divided into parts and you won't lose the enthusiasm midway.

What’s the most difficult part of being overweight?

BODY SHAMING-

LETHARGY-

LAZINESS-

LACK OF ENERGY-

LACK OF CONFIDENCE

What shape do you see yourself 10 years down the line?

I have been huge all my life, at 64.5kgs i'm skinniest of all time. My future goal is to reach 100kgs by putting on muscle and maintaining my body fat below 9% (Transformation story part 2, working on it! ) I DREAM TO CONQUER THE MOUNT EVEREST SOMEDAY AND I WILL DO IT VERY SOON. #dreamsofa136kgman

What are the lifestyle changes you made?

I’m living a Complete Healthy Lifestyle, I feel incomplete If I have missed even a single day of my 6 days/week workout regime, I now crave for healthy food as eating clean is now a staple diet for me, after learning the hard way the importance of diet, exercise and sleep. I take care of all three things all the time to keep my body function at its best.

“Our mind and body gets used to the routine and food, allow time to settle everything and your subconscious mind will eventually accept the lifestyle changes. This approach will prevent your weight to bounce back.”

What was the lowest point for you?

My lowest point was all before I started my transformative journey, once I was on it. The only thing I felt was a never ending high and whenever I felt low even for a bit, I used to take out my old pictures and compare while recalling those times when I started my journey and why I started it.

Lessons learnt from weight loss:

It's very easy to pick up things, tasks and drop them anytime when you know no one is watching, but it gets next to impossible to drop things and give up when you know a lot of people are watching and tracking your progress as you have set an example for them, you have inspired them to keep a watch on you by transforming yourself in such a way that now people are counting on you, so you would never want to become a bad example for yourself as well as for others.

Keep your phone aside when working out! The current generation is addicted to phone, people using their phone on treadmill, other cardio machines and even while resting between sets. One will start checking their facebook, instagram, snapchat, twitter or text messages and will start replying. What happens here is all your attention is diverted towards your phone and you lose the track of your workout. Your body's temperature cools down, your heart rate leaves the fat burning zone and constantly drops towards resting zone. Every minute you are lost in your phone doing something or the other, is a minute wasted which you could have used for your benefit. If you get a lot of important work related calls while working out switch time to early morning or late evenings, avoid the working hours.

"Minimum distractions! Maximum results!"

Gym is not a place to socialise, hang out with friends, chit-chat have a gala time - we have cafes for that. Gym is a place wherein you go to get results, change your body, get better, grow that muscle, burn that fat, increase your strength, up your stamina, challenge yourself to become a better you. Focus on these aspects, stick to the reason why you came to gym: "to workout!"

Never skip your warm up and stretching, it's equally as important as your workout is. Cases of muscle and ligament tears mostly takes place when one tries to work out without warming up properly. Consider the example of iron, even our body works on the somewhat same principle, one can easily change the shape of the iron when it's red hot, but if one tries to do the same when the iron is not hot or not at the optimum temperature, one might end up breaking the iron in two or more parts, but won't be able to change it to the desired shape. Hence always warm up first "to the optimum temperature", then stretch all your primary and secondary muscles which you are going to be training on that particular day. Once done with stretching get on to your workout without letting your body cool down to normal resting temperature and resting heart rate. One can get best results out of their workout if the body remains at optimum temperature all throughout the workout. So don't think twice before hitting that treadmill for a quick sprint or doing some burpees and few pull-ups in the middle of your on-going workout whenever you feel you have left the optimum temperature zone and looking for a quick warm up.

It's not what you eat! It's what you write down! Maintain a food diary.

Writing your daily intake down plays a major role in overriding your brain orders and cravings. Once the human brain is overridden it will naturally crave for healthy-nutritious foods instead of any unhealthy ones.

Just take the first few steps, get the ball rolling, once you get into the motion just hold on to the flow you'll end up at the place you always a wanted to be.

Stay consistent with your efforts, results will show up sooner or later, just keep pushing.

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